The devil and the good god
The Devil and the Good God ( Le diable et le bon Dieu ) is a play written in 1951 by the French philosopher and writer Jean-Paul Sartre . It takes place in Germany in the 16th century during the peasant wars . The piece addresses the relationship between morality and revolution.
action
Götz, in vague reference to Götz von Berlichingen , is a noble general who always tries to do evil in order to challenge God. During the siege of the city of Worms, the baker and revolutionary Nasty comes under his control, who convinces him that his behavior only supports the existing order and is therefore a tool of the rulers. From then on, Götz changes, only tries to do good and to please God. He gave his lands to his subjects and built a "City of Light" on his territory. But even with this he is not successful. His peasants are slain because they do not want to take part in the revolt against the other feudal lords, and the revolt threatens to fail because Götz refuses to lead it. After a devastating defeat of the insurgents with 25,000 dead, he realizes that his refusal to lead the troops and thus also be responsible for their deaths caused many more deaths. Only when he realizes that God does not exist and breaks away from absolute moral concepts given by him does he recognize a concrete historical morality in which it is inevitable to cause suffering in order to avert greater suffering. As a first consequence of this new morality, Götz takes over the leadership of the rebels that he has been offered and stabs a disobedient officer to death.
premiere
The premiere took place on June 7, 1951 at the Théâtre Antoine in Paris. The German premiere took place on October 30, 1951 in the Deutsches Schauspielhaus in Hamburg in a production by Karl-Heinz Stroux .
literature
- Wolfgang Hierse: Sartre. The dramatic work 2. Interpretations and investigations. Series: Analyzes and Reflections AR, 65. Joachim Beyer, Hollfeld 1988 ISBN 3-88805-040-5
notes
- ↑ Also about: The dirty hands . The honorable whore; The trapped (from Altona) = Les séquestrés d'Altona; The game is over ; In the gear train